Nominationtide draws nigh

Mere days from now, the Supreme Executive Committee will begin accepting saintly nominations for Lent Madness 2016 during the holy season of Nominationtide. This sacred time of the year will commence at 8:00 am this Thursday, May 7, and run for a full week, concluding on the Feast of the Ascension, May 14.

While the process for precisely how the Lent Madness bracket is formulated is one of the great sacred mysteries of the faith, know that the SEC does indeed occasionally heed the cry of the Lent Madness faithful. Thus while maintaining supremacy in all things, there is a tiny window into which Lenten democracy flows. But don’t get used to it.

As you fast in preparation for Nominationtide we offer you a glimpse into the mind of the SEC with this classic Monday Madness video explaining the bracket formation process. Let’s just say that ferrets are involved.

Peg, good question. Take a look at Tim’s post from May 2014 (it’s the ONLY post from May 2014!) and the Wall of Fame and adjust for the 2015 changes. So everyone from 2015 is ineligible, Francis is permanently retired as are all previous Golden Halo winners, and those who got through a couple of rounds in 2012-14 are also ineligible for 2016.

Have you ever nominated Cesar Chavez? Or has he gotten the short straw? On the other coast (from where you are) there is a movement to nominated him for sainthood. Also, and more controversial is the Pope’s proposal to nominate Fr. Junipero Serra.

I take it, from some of the names already noted, that nominations of saints from more recent centuries need not be from the Anglican Communion, so some ecumenical names I’d suggest would be Martin Luther King and Father Damian of Molokai, with an Anglican being the Northern Irish hymnwriter Cecil Frances Alexander.

In celebration of my canine kid Poppy running for inclusion in Episcodogs, I’ll nominate the Welsh saint Melangell who protected animals. Also, Bishop Angelilli of Riojas, a defender of the poor and contemporary of Oscar Romero.

How exciting to open my email and find a message from Lentmadness! I realize that I can go to the website anytime, but receiving this recent contact from ya’ll definitely makes my day. I have definitely missed the Madness part from Scott and Tim and all the rest of you. Blessings to all during this next important week.

I’d rather that Tim and Scott not give it up but rather that complaining whiners give up trying to bring the rest of us down to the level of the lowest common (very) denominator of “Woe is me”. What innovative thoughts do we need for helping earthquake victims other that “get there and dig” or “put your money where your mouth is so others can get there and dig” or maybe a huge supply of super glue to make sure that the ground doesn’t move any more? No one held a gun to your head to make you watch anything about Lent Madness or Nominationtide or the like. Spare us all your ire, your irk, your nasty outlook. Please.

May I please nominate Princess Etheldreda/Saint Audrey of Ely (East Anglian princess, a Fenland and Northumbrian queen and Abbess of Ely)? And I pray a blessing on you both and invoke for you an angelic veil of protection against humourlessness.

I nominate St. John of Damascus, defender of icons in the first Iconoclastic Controversy in the eight century C.E., arguably one of the sanest people who ever lived. He argued that images, including but not limited to the ones included in God’s instructions for the first temple, were present in the Bible. His main point was that God, whom the Iconoclasts said was uncircumscribed, had chosen to become circumscribed in the person of Jesus. St. John said, “I worship not matter, but the Creator of matter, who became matter for my sake.”

I received my Brigid of Kildare’s glass today, 5/12, Now what is the appropriate libation?
Mead? A shandy ( I am English, after all)? Champagne? Guinness? Suggestions, please!
It’s beautiful, by the way. I’m sure they are all having a pint or three in the great beyond.

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